Why isn’t the police scandal in Scotland much bigger news?

Police Scotland, the UK’s second biggest force in terms of officer numbers, has been at the centre of an extraordinary row for months.

Phil Gormley, chief constable, is on leave of absence following claims of bullying. He stepped aside in September last year. He denies any wrongdoing.

Bernard Higgins, assistant chief constable, was suspended over misconduct allegations. He denies any wrongdoing.

Gormley’s wife, retired police officer Clare Gormley, says that her husband has been vilified, and has been targeted because he was born in England, that is Surrey not Stirling. She said in an interview with the Scottish Daily Mail: “‘This basic investigation has all the features of a disproportionate fishing expedition. It can be to no-one’s advantage to have this dragging out; or can it?”

Gormley’s supporters say that he was given the impossible task of getting a struggling force into shape, and when he tried to control costs and instigate improvements historic allegations were suddenly made against the “outsider.”

The Scottish Government created a single force, covering a vast area, in 2013. There are concerns over the centralised computer system, and the culture of the force looks deeply troubling.

For decades there had been warnings that the move to a single force would be problematic. Would it give politicians in Edinburgh too much control? Previously, the old forces, such as Strathclyde, policed their own specific areas and cooperated, but there was a balance to the set-up. It always struck me, in my time as a reporter and editor in Scotland, as an effective if hardly flawless arrangement.

Yet, the situation created since seems, on any measure, to be much worse than what went before. The scandal cannot be good for public trust.

North of the border, this is getting big licks in the press and on television and radio. While south of the border there have been a few references and stories, it has barely figured.

If this meltdown was happening in the Met it would – at key points – be a national story leading the 6pm news and viewers across the UK would see it. Imagine the, perfectly valid, coverage if the partner of a head of the Met made those claims against an investigation. Theresa May would be under pressure.

Next time Nicola Sturgeon pops up smugly burbling about a second referendum for which there is no demand in Scotland, perhaps she could be grilled extensively on what is going on in Police Scotland. A lot of taxpayer money is at stake.

I am not suggesting Police Scotland deserves equal coverage. London is the UK capital. The Met guards the Royal family and senior politicians. It has a particular role in tackling terrorism.

Even so, there is a tendency post-devolution to think such stories are merely devolved business, nothing for the rest of us to see here, move along now. Although inquiries are ongoing, and all involved deny wrongdoing, there is clearly a lot to see. It is a hell of a story.